Realism in 19th Century Spanish Literature
Realism arrived in Spain during the second half of the nineteenth century, slightly later than in other parts of Europe. While European Realism masters (excluding the Russians) had published their major works before 1850, Realism in Spain wasn’t considered established until the publication of Galdós’ La Fontana de Oro in 1870. However, several factors paved the way for Realism’s success in Spain, including translations of foreign works, the Golden Age’s realist tradition, and the prevalence of “pictures of manners” in the first half of the century.
Characteristics of Realism in Literature
Realism in literature is characterized by:
- Interest in Reality: A focus on strict observation of life and meticulous documentation. Stendhal famously defined the novel as “a mirror that strolls along the way.”
- Depiction of Customs: Major novelists created vast frescoes of contemporary life, leading to a boom in regional novels. Authors often set their stories in familiar environments, such as Clarín and Palacio Valdés in Asturias, Pardo Bazán in Galicia, Alarcón and Valera in Andalusia, Pereda in Santander, and Blasco Ibáñez in Valencia. Galdós, though originally from the Canary Islands, adopted Madrid as his literary setting.
- Character Development: Many novels centered on in-depth studies of individual characters, exploring their behavior and motivations. This approach gave rise to what we might call the psychological novel.
- Social and Moral Purpose: Observing and describing reality naturally led to a critical examination of societal flaws and their root causes. This gave birth to the “novel of thesis,” with Spanish authors divided into two camps. One group attributed society’s ills to a modern, godless, selfish, and materialistic world, advocating for a return to traditional values like family, authority, and religion (Alarcón, Pereda, Coloma, Palacio Valdés). The other group blamed the persistence of a traditional, superstitious, and fanatical society for hindering progress and freedom (Clarín, Galdós, Pardo Bazán, Blasco Ibáñez).
- Objectivity Ideal: Authors aimed to present themselves as impartial reporters, simply conveying what they saw or heard. However, in practice, they maintained an omniscient perspective, offering personal reflections and commentary on their characters’ actions.
- Stylistic Shift: Realist style moved away from the bombastic rhetoric of Romanticism, embracing detailed descriptions of characters and environments. This led to a more faithful reflection of colloquial speech and an adaptation of prose to suit each character’s nature.
- Contemporary Themes: Realist novels focused on contemporary issues, particularly the problems (employment, economic, romantic) faced by the urban middle classes, who were also the primary readers of these novels.
Naturalism: A Radicalization of Realism
Certain aspects of Realism were taken to an extreme in Naturalism. According to its founder, Émile Zola, the novel should not merely observe reality but also experiment with it. It should serve as a tool for studying and transcribing human behavior based on a materialist view of life. Naturalists believed that human actions were driven by physical circumstances (genetic inheritance, upbringing, social pressure). By meticulously describing these circumstances, they sought to explain or predict character behavior. They often placed their characters in specific situations and attributed their actions to the deterministic influence of these circumstances. Consequently, their typical characters were those most visibly affected by their environment: the mentally challenged, alcoholics, and psychopaths. Naturalists believed that while humans couldn’t escape the influence of their environment, they could change those circumstances. This led many Naturalist writers to engage in political activism, advocating for a more just social order.
Naturalism in Spain
In Spain, Emilia Pardo Bazán introduced the theory of Naturalism through a series of articles titled The Urgent Issue. She adapted Naturalism to the Spanish context, rejecting certain aspects like determinism and other ideological tenets in favor of a Christian conception of humanity. However, she defended the artist’s right to depict social ills, advocating for the inclusion of previously deemed inappropriate subjects in novels: the portrayal of sordid environments, the narration of harsh situations, and the emphasis on the power of social conditioning. This meant taking documentation and the reproduction of reality to their logical conclusions.